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Space Projects - Space Exploration for Students and Other Peoples of the WorldMon, 30 Mar 2015 00:48:05 +0000en-UShourly1http://wordpress.org/?v=4.1.1SEDS Announces 2014 University Student Rocketry Challengehttp://seds.org/2014/02/26/seds-announces-2014-university-student-rocketry-challenge/
http://seds.org/2014/02/26/seds-announces-2014-university-student-rocketry-challenge/#commentsWed, 26 Feb 2014 07:26:43 +0000http://new.seds.org/?p=12028SEDS-USA is pleased to announce the 2014 University Student Rocketry Challenge. This competition challenges teams to design and launch a high-powered rocket to an altitude of 10,000 feet while carrying a standardized payload. Teams may earn additional points by including a custom payload or propulsion system.

The competition is open to teams of students from any university within the United States, and there is no cost to enter. Teams will be required to submit design and fabrication reports throughout the competition, and will participate in several engineering reviews.

The USRC builds on the success of the national rocketry competition held by SEDS for the past three years, which has seen over 200 students gain hands-on engineering experience. The first place team will receive a prize of $1000.

Official competition rules can be found at http://new.seds.org/usrc. In order to participate, a letter of intent must be submitted to usrc@seds.org by February 28, 2014.

]]>http://seds.org/2014/02/26/seds-announces-2014-university-student-rocketry-challenge/feed/0SEDS Joins the Space Exploration Alliance in Legislative Blitz to Prioritize Space Explorationhttp://seds.org/2013/12/02/seds-joins-space-exploration-alliance-legislative-blitz-prioritize-space-exploration/
http://seds.org/2013/12/02/seds-joins-space-exploration-alliance-legislative-blitz-prioritize-space-exploration/#commentsMon, 02 Dec 2013 03:09:09 +0000http://new.seds.org/?p=11950From February 23rd to February 25th, 2014, space exploration advocates across the United States will call on Congress to prioritize the funding and development of the national space program. The purpose of this convergence on Washington is to show “that there is strong constituent support for an ambitious space program.”

The Space Exploration Alliance (SEA) was formed in 2004 when thirteen of the nation’s top space advocacy group joined forces for the first “Legislative Blitz” on Congress. Seventy-six space enthusiasts rallied in support of NASA and space exploration, speaking with over 200 congressional offices on the matter. Now, SEA calls on advocates of space exploration everywhere to help convince Congress of the long-term goals and short-term steps required for the United States to reap the economic, technological, and strategic benefits of space. Space exploration has become a necessity in our modern world; it is the only way forward as a species. SEA’s goals include sending humans to least one destination beyond low-earth orbit, such as the Moon or a nearby asteroid, in the next ten years. SEA also advocates for a manned mission to Mars by 2030.

This year, the Space Exploration Alliance is reaching out again to space advocacy groups around the nation. If you or your organization is interested in participating, or if you would like more information, please visit http://www.spaceexplorationalliance.org/blitz/. Registration is free, and there will be an information and training session on Sunday, February 23rd, with materials for meetings on Monday, February 24th and Tuesday, February 25th.

About SEDS:
The Students for the Exploration and Development of Space (SEDS) is the world’s only independent, fully student-run, nonprofit organization for space advocacy. Founded in 1980 by students frustrated with the stagnation of NASA after Apollo, SEDS has inspired tens of thousands of students to pursue careers in science, engineering, and technology. SEDS supports a network of over 30 student chapters across the United States, hosts the largest student-run space conference in the world (SpaceVision), provides students opportunities to develop their leadership skills and professional networks, and inspires others through their involvement in space-related projects. Alumni can be found throughout the space industry in both traditional and “New Space” companies. For more information visit: http://www.seds.org.

]]>http://seds.org/2013/12/02/seds-joins-space-exploration-alliance-legislative-blitz-prioritize-space-exploration/feed/0California Space Enterprise Center Now Offering Discount Membership to SEDS Studentshttp://seds.org/2013/10/12/california-space-enterprise-center-now-offering-discount-membership-to-seds-students/
http://seds.org/2013/10/12/california-space-enterprise-center-now-offering-discount-membership-to-seds-students/#commentsSat, 12 Oct 2013 17:41:59 +0000http://new.seds.org/?p=11883The California Space Enterprise Center (CSEC) has formed an alliance with Students for the Exploration and Development of Space (SEDS) to offer discounted memberships with Green2Gold and Space Entrepreneurship. SEDS members now have the opportunity to purchase memberships for only $99 per year, compared to the usual $350 for a full year membership.

Services offered by Green2Gold include concept to to marketplace mentorship, financing and funding resources, intellectual property protection, strategic planning/marketing, and so much more. For a full list of services see the following webpage: http://www.green2gold.org/services-offered-by-green2gold.

The CSEC focuses on fostering invention and innovation for space exploration and commercialization. The Center features a fully independent and self-sustainable space station, a complete spectrum business incubator with wet/dry R&D labs, venues for viewing rocket launches, a public observatory and planetarium, a convention/event/entertainment complex, and an education center featuring a museum of history and technology. CSEC is a prime sponsor of this year’s NewSpace Student Business Plan Competition, to be held in Tempe, Arizona at the SEDS SpaceVision 2013 national conference. For the grand prize winner, CSEC is offering CSEC membership and Virtual Incubation, CSEC membership for the second-place winner, and Green2Gold membership for third place.

CSEC-SEDS Membership Details here!

]]>http://seds.org/2013/10/12/california-space-enterprise-center-now-offering-discount-membership-to-seds-students/feed/0Space Frontier Foundation and Students for the Exploration & Development of Space Present NewSpace Student Business Plan Competitionhttp://seds.org/2013/09/01/space-frontier-foundation-students-exploration-development-space-present-newspace-student-business-plan-competition/
http://seds.org/2013/09/01/space-frontier-foundation-students-exploration-development-space-present-newspace-student-business-plan-competition/#commentsSun, 01 Sep 2013 03:16:34 +0000http://new.seds.org/?p=11952The Space Frontier Foundation (SFF) and the Students for the Exploration & Development of Space (SEDS) are proud to announce the 3rd annual Student NewSpace Business Plan Competition, taking place at SpaceVision on November 8th at the Interdisciplinary Science and Technology Building 4 (ISTB4). SpaceVision is an annual conference organized by SEDS-USA, attracting large numbers of students, professionals and enthusiasts from around the country.

This competition will require its participants to pitch their business model to a panel of investors experienced in the NewSpace industry and space entrepreneurship. The NewSpace industry is a growing sector of companies who share a bold vision of enabling the economic frontier of space development in areas such as space tourism, space manufacturing, resources harvesting, and commercial services in transportation and satellite infrastructure. The business plan must therefore revolve around a space-frontier-enabling technology or service idea. The plan need not entail a company that literally operates in space.

All undergraduate and graduate students affiliated with a US-based university are eligible to participate; however, students may be of any nationality. Teams are encouraged to be creative and draw parallels from other sectors and industries. Engineering and business students are encouraged to collaborate together to develop a strong business model. Students need not be members of SEDS but are encouraged to reach out to or start a local SEDS chapter at their institution.

The Grand Prize includes one year of virtual incubation through the California Space Enterprise Center and Green 2, one year of member ship in Space Entrepreneur, Inventor and Innovator Program of the Space Enterprise Center, $1000 dollar cash prize sponsored by Zveznet Industries, and a trophy featuring a meteorite from Aerolite Meteorites, LLC sponsored by Standard Propellant.

For more information on rules, procedures, deadlines and prizes, visit the competition website: http://spacevision.seds.org/Business_Plan_Competition/

SEDS is the world’s largest student-run organization dedicated to space advocacy and development. Space Frontier Foundation is a non-profit corporation whose goal is to open the space frontier to space settlement through private sector development.

]]>http://seds.org/2013/09/01/space-frontier-foundation-students-exploration-development-space-present-newspace-student-business-plan-competition/feed/0Come See SEDS at the 2013 Space Tech Expohttp://seds.org/2013/05/22/come-see-seds-at-the-2013-space-tech-expo/
http://seds.org/2013/05/22/come-see-seds-at-the-2013-space-tech-expo/#commentsWed, 22 May 2013 12:52:50 +0000http://new.seds.org/?p=9670The Students for the Exploration and Development of Space (SEDS) will be an exhibitor at this year’s Space Tech Expo at booth #8044. Visitors will be able to see the latest and greatest of what SEDS and its chapters have been up to, including its annual High Power Rocketry Competition. Attendees can also see XCOR’s Lynx spaceplane at the Expo’s Space Experience Park, aboard which they can book a flight through Moonandback Travel with the SEDS referral code (See release and more information at http://new.seds.org/2013/05/moonandback-travel-offering-off-world-excursions-benefiting-seds/).

SEDS is the world’s only independent, fully student-run, nonprofit organization for space advocacy. Founded in 1980 by students frustrated with the stagnation of NASA after Apollo, SEDS has inspired tens of thousands of students to pursue careers in science, engineering, and technology. SEDS supports a network of over 30 student chapters across the United States, hosts the largest student-run space conference in the world (SpaceVision), provides students opportunities to develop their leadership skills and professional networks, and inspires others through their involvement in space-related projects. Alumni can be found throughout the space industry in both traditional and “New Space” companies. For more information, visit: http://www.seds.org.

The Space Tech Expo will be held this week from May 21st through May 23rd in Long Beach, California at the Long Beach Convention and Entertainment Center. This year’s conference will be themed around “The Business Case for Space.” Many companies and organizations affiliated with SEDS, including Google Lunar X PRIZE and XCOR, will also be present as exhibitors. Registration as an Exhibition visitor and for the Satellite & Space Summit is free (http://www.spacetechexpo.com/registration).

]]>http://seds.org/2013/05/22/come-see-seds-at-the-2013-space-tech-expo/feed/0SEDS Members Offered Discount Subscription to NewSpace Globalhttp://seds.org/2013/05/22/seds-members-offered-discount-subscription-to-newspace-global/
http://seds.org/2013/05/22/seds-members-offered-discount-subscription-to-newspace-global/#commentsWed, 22 May 2013 12:51:38 +0000http://new.seds.org/?p=9668The Students for the Exploration and Development of Space (SEDS) is pleased to announce that its student members now have the opportunity to subscribe to NewSpace Global (NSG) at an immensely discounted rate. NewSpace Global is the world’s leading source of information and analysis regarding the commercial space sector, with subscriptions to this information normally priced at $395 per year. SEDS members can subscribe to this essential information for only $9.95 per month. With this subscription students will have access to NSG’s monthly market tracking report, Thruster, in addition to the NSG Indices and NewSpace Watch. NSG Indices dynamically tracks the top 100 privately owned companies, private companies “on the bubble”, and publicly traded companies, all within the New Space industry. NewSpace Watch provides a daily report of the latest news, events, and announcements within the private space industry, with over 21,000 postings to date. Student members of SEDS can sign up at http://www.newspacewatch.com/signup-edu.php using their .edu email address and the coupon code “NSGEDU”.
]]>http://seds.org/2013/05/22/seds-members-offered-discount-subscription-to-newspace-global/feed/0SEDS One of Twenty Winners in Microsoft and GOOD Maker Challengehttp://seds.org/2013/03/20/seds-twenty-winners-microsoft-good-maker-challenge/
http://seds.org/2013/03/20/seds-twenty-winners-microsoft-good-maker-challenge/#commentsWed, 20 Mar 2013 03:29:31 +0000http://new.seds.org/?p=11954Last month social empowerment community GOOD teamed up with Microsoft’s Give For Youth, a program that helps nonprofits crowd fund their youth-focused projects in partnership with GlobalGiving, in the GOOD Maker Challenge for Inspiring Youth-Focused Nonprofits. For two weeks the public voted for the nonprofit organizations whose youth education, employment, entrepreneurial projects they deemed most worthy of funding. The twenty organizations who received the most votes would be able to fundraise on the Give For Youth platform. Between March 18th and March 27th, Microsoft will match all funds up to $100,000 raised by SEDS and the nineteen other nonprofits who are winners of this Challenge. The top three finalists of this second fundraising challenge will receive an additional prize including $5000 in Microsoft Store money and a one-year subscription to GOOD and its cobrands.

SEDS’s winning endeavor in this challenge is STEM Education and Outreach for the Younger Generation. A nonprofit organization run entirely by college students at 40 university chapters nationwide, SEDS strives to create projects to educate K-12 students about the wonders of space in addition to the traditional fields of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM). Projects include university symposia, high altitude balloon and rocket launches and launch competitions, space days, and astronomy nights. Humanity’s future is in space and SEDS wants to show our nation’s youth that the sky is not the limit and inspire them to dream bigger.

Founded in 1980 by prolific entrepreneurs Peter Diamandis, Bob Richards, and Todd Hawley, SEDS has grown to over 10,000 members worldwide with alumni permeating the public and private space industry. Many of these alums cite their experiences with SEDS as a primary motivator in their success and endeavors in their careers in the space industry. William Pomerantz, Vice President for Special Projects at Sir Richard Branson’s Virgin Galactic, writes: “Without a doubt, I owe my career in the space industry to joining my local SEDS chapter as a college freshman. I’ve seen SEDS have a similar impact on many other students, and am proud to have hired several SEDS members and alumni. This organization accomplishes a lot with only a little in the way of resources, and I’m confident they could really scale up.”

To help SEDS enhance their projects and reach to educate and inspire K-12 students across America about space and STEM, visit their page on Give For Youth (http://www.giveforyouth.org/projects/seds/) until March 27th. Your support for their projects will have double the impact with the help of Microsoft and will mean the universe to young students everywhere.

About SEDS:
The Students for the Exploration and Development of Space (SEDS) is the world’s only independent, fully student-run, nonprofit organization for space advocacy. Founded in 1980 by students frustrated with the stagnation of NASA after Apollo, SEDS has inspired tens of thousands of students to pursue careers in science, engineering, and technology. SEDS supports a network of over 30 student chapters across the United States, hosts the largest student-run space conference in the world (SpaceVision), provides students opportunities to develop their leadership skills and professional networks, and inspires others through their involvement in space-related projects. Alumni can be found throughout the space industry in both traditional and “New Space” companies. For more information visit: http://www.seds.org.

]]>http://seds.org/2013/03/20/seds-twenty-winners-microsoft-good-maker-challenge/feed/0SEDS Pushes for Further Space Exploration After Curiosity Discoveryhttp://seds.org/2013/03/15/seds-pushes-space-exploration-curiosity-discovery/
http://seds.org/2013/03/15/seds-pushes-space-exploration-curiosity-discovery/#commentsFri, 15 Mar 2013 03:36:30 +0000http://new.seds.org/?p=11957On February 8, 2013, the Mars Science Laboratory rover Curiosity collected its first rock sample of the Martian soil – the first time in history that a man-made robot to drilled into the surface of another planet. Chemical analysis of the rock powder seems to provide an answer to the fundamental question of whether this planet could ever have supported a habitable environment. According to the lead scientist for NASA’s Mars Exploration Program, Michael Meyer, “From what we know now, the answer is yes.”

The rover had long been scouting out a drilling location on Mars that would be a likely candidate for previous habitation, finally deciding on a spot very near where it had earlier found an ancient streambed in the Gale Crater. In contrast to the highly oxidized and acidic material constituting much of the Martian surface, this rock sample is made of a fine-grained mudstone containing clay minerals, a product of interaction between fresh water and igneous rock. Analysis by the Sample Analysis at Mars (SAM) instrument aboard Curiosity revealed what principal investigator Paul Mahaffy calls an “impressive range of chemical ingredients” indicative of a “possible chemical energy source for micro-organisms.” This is certainly grounds for excitement about a once-habitable Red Planet and subsequent drillings will be conducted to confirm these results, though not until May.

This discovery not only demonstrates humanity’s need for the continuation and enhancement of exploration missions, but also humanity’s desire for such endeavors in space. Excitement over the question of habitation on Mars, and Curiosity’s answer, has surpassed the scientific community and permeated all circles of society and culture internationally. Humanity has seen what one robotic rover can discover when sent to Mars — the time has come to see what humanity can discover when sent to Mars.

About SEDS:
The Students for the Exploration and Development of Space (SEDS) is the world’s only independent, fully student-run, nonprofit organization for space advocacy. Founded in 1980 by students frustrated with the stagnation of NASA after Apollo, SEDS has inspired tens of thousands of students to pursue careers in science, engineering, and technology. SEDS supports a network of over 30 student chapters across the United States, hosts the largest student-run space conference in the world (SpaceVision), provides students opportunities to develop their leadership skills and professional networks, and inspires others through their involvement in space-related projects. Alumni can be found throughout the space industry in both traditional and “New Space” companies. For more information visit: http://www.seds.org.

]]>http://seds.org/2013/03/15/seds-pushes-space-exploration-curiosity-discovery/feed/0SEDS Calls for Action After Chelyabinsk Impact Eventhttp://seds.org/2013/02/25/seds-calls-for-action-after-chelyabinsk-impact-event/
http://seds.org/2013/02/25/seds-calls-for-action-after-chelyabinsk-impact-event/#commentsMon, 25 Feb 2013 21:35:36 +0000http://new.seds.org/?p=9519On the morning of Friday, February 15th, the planet Earth was once again reminded of its vulnerability to the dangers of the universe. An estimated 10,000-ton meteor exploded over the skies of the southern Russian city of Chelyabinsk, releasing nearly 500 kilotons of energy from its entry into Earth’s atmosphere to its airborne disintegration. With injury estimates exceeding 1,000 and a reported 3,000 buildings damaged, it is a staunch reminder of the dangers and risks that we carry every day.

At about 17 meters (55 feet) wide, this meteor is alarmingly small by cosmic standards, described by NASA scientists as a “tiny asteroid.” However it is the largest reported meteor since 1908, when an estimated 100-meter (330-foot) meteor – the largest in recorded history – exploded near the Tunguska River in what is now Krasnoyarsk Krai, Russia. Paul Chodas of NASA’s Near-Earth Object Program Office at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, CA said an event of this magnitude is expected to occur “once every 100 years on average.” It seems we were due for such an event, and probably should have been expecting it.

The event came less than 24 hours away from the closest approach of 2012 DA14, a 190,000-ton asteroid. 2012 DA14, discovered just last year by amateur astronomers in Spain, will swoop down towards Earth, coming within 17,200 miles of its surface. Our own communications satellites watched as it came within a hair’s breadth of Earth by astronomical standards. If this asteroid were to impact our planet, it could release an explosion around three megatons — almost 200 times more powerful than the blast from the atomic bomb at Hiroshima. While astronomers have been able to determine that 2012 DA14 will not impact us in the future, we should see this flyby as a cautionary reminder of the imminent and omnipresent dangers just outside our atmosphere.

Students for the Exploration and Development of Space calls on leaders worldwide to recognize the danger we face and provide appropriate resources to reduce the risk to all of human life. The potential likelihood of localized or worldwide destruction with humanity caught unaware is far too grave to ignore. We must not delay in developing the technologies to not only discover these objects with greater speed and accuracy, but also those to divert such destructive forces once we do detect them from our fragile pale blue dot.

]]>http://seds.org/2013/02/25/seds-calls-for-action-after-chelyabinsk-impact-event/feed/0SEA Blitz Calls On Congress to Make Space a Priorityhttp://seds.org/2013/02/22/sea-blitz-calls-on-congress-to-make-space-a-priority/
http://seds.org/2013/02/22/sea-blitz-calls-on-congress-to-make-space-a-priority/#commentsFri, 22 Feb 2013 21:26:56 +0000http://new.seds.org/?p=9516Next week, the Space Exploration Alliance will call upon Congress to ensure that America’s space program is a national priority in the coming year. Space advocacy groups from all over the country will gather in our nation’s Capitol to convince members of congress of “strong constituent support for an ambitious space program.”

The Space Exploration Alliance (SEA) was formed in 2004 when thirteen of the top space advocacy group joined forces for the first “Legislative Blitz” on Congress. Seventy-six space enthusiasts rallied in support of NASA and space exploration, speaking with over 200 congressional offices on the matter. Now SEA calls on advocates of space exploration everywhere to help convince Congress of the long-term goals and short-term steps required for the United States to reap the economic, technological, and strategic benefits of space. Space exploration has become a necessity in our modern world, no longer an option as it was at the dawn of the space age. SEA’s goals include humans reaching at least one destination beyond low-earth orbit (i.e. the Moon or an asteroid) in the next ten years and landing on Mars by 2030.

Anyone who is interested in participating in the 2013 SEA Legislative Blitz or seeking more information should visit: http://www.spaceexplorationalliance.org/blitz/. Registration is free of charge. SEA will provide registrants with an educational and training session on February 24th in addition to materials for meetings on subsequent days of the Blitz.

About SEDS:
The Students for the Exploration and Development of Space (SEDS) is the world’s only independent, fully student-run, nonprofit organization for space advocacy. Founded in 1980 by students frustrated with the stagnation of NASA after Apollo, SEDS has inspired tens of thousands of students to pursue careers in science, engineering, and technology. SEDS supports a network of over 30 student chapters across the United States, hosts the largest student-run space conference in the world (SpaceVision), provides students opportunities to develop their leadership skills and professional networks, and inspires others through their involvement in space-related projects. Alumni can be found throughout the space industry in both traditional and “New Space” companies. For more information visit: http://www.seds.org.